Children's Literature: Bilingual Picture Books

Children from around the world say "hello" in forty-two languages, from Amharic to Zulu.

In Sydney, Australia, and in Morocco, two boys and their families have a day of shopping. Readers are invited to compare illustrations in two wordless stories that are intended to be read one from left to right and the other from right to left.

A board book of children's faces making different expressions such as silly, sleepy, and frowning , with accompanying text in Arabic and English.

Enter the imaginary world of a little girl playing with her mother's hijaab. With a swirl of the hijaab, she is at once a brave warrior queen, an adventurous nomad in the desert, a beautiful bride, or inside a Bedouin tent.

Introduces Chinese language to preschool children in a gentle, playful way. The ABC structure provides a familiar framework that encourages fun and easy learning.

When Lin's beloved pet dragon disappears, she searches for him far and wide until a witch helps her to reach the dragon's new home. Introduces a different Chinese character on each step of Lin's adventure.

When Joe and Cody sing and dance for the caribou, something unexpected happens.

Dragonfly Kites refers to "kites" made by tying a string around the middles of dragonflies. Two Cree brothers in northern Manitoba fly these kites during the day, but at night fly themselves in their dreams. This is the second book in the Magical Songs of the North Wind trilogy.

All through the sunny day the white bench in the park provides pleasure for the many people who come by, from the old man taking a walk to the children playing in the park.

After Un-hye moves from Korea to the United States, her new classmates help her decide what her name should be. In Korean.

Being the new kid in school is hard enough, but what about when nobody can pronounce your name? Having just moved from Korea, Unhei is anxious that American kids will like her. So instead of introducing herself on the first day of school, she tells the class that she will choose a name by the following week. Her new classmates are fascinated by this no-name girl and decide to help out by filling a glass jar with names for her to pick from. But while Unhei practices being a Suzy, Laura, or Amanda, one of her classmates comes to her neighborhood and discovers her real name and its special meaning. On the day of her name choosing, the name jar has mysteriously disappeared. Encouraged by her new friends, Unhei chooses her own Korean name and helps everyone pronounce it.

In Korean.

Mahn-hee's House depicts the house and home life of a family of modest means. In Korean.

As she travels from the city to her grandmother's village, a young girl looks forward to her family's celebration of Chu-Suk, the harvest moon festival. In Korean.

Searching for their missing grandmother, two Korean children follow tracks into a fantastic world filled with beings from folklore who speak in Korean. Includes translations and information about the folkloric characters.

This bilingual (English/Spanish) book offers children a simple, scientifically accurate explanation about how our skin color is determined by our ancestors, the sun, and melanin. It’s also filled with colorful photographs that capture the beautiful variety of skin tones.

An illustrated collection of nursery rhymes, finger play games, and lullabies from the major Latino groups living in the United States today.

The author recalls his childhood in the mountains and valleys of California with his farmworker parents who inspired him with poetry and song.

A little boy admires his big brother and aspires to be like him when he is older.

A biography of Cesar Chavez, from age ten when he and his family lived happily on their Arizona ranch, to age thirty-eight when he led a peaceful protest against California migrant workers' miserable working conditions.

In this folktale from New Mexico, a rich man tries to prove his wealth by using a new spoon for every bite and in the process is served a pretty dish of comeuppance.

Two cousins, one in Mexico and one in New York City, write to each other and learn that even though their daily lives differ, at heart the boys are very similar.

In this bilingual story that introduces descriptive adjectives, words for the weather, months, and a child's seasonal wardrobe, children enjoy what makes each season special.

Doña Flor, a giant lady with a big heart, sets off to protect her neighbors from what they think is a dangerous animal, but soon discovers the tiny secret behind the huge noise.

The author describes, in bilingual text and illustrations, her experiences growing up in a Hispanic community in Texas.

In simple words and sun-drenched paintings, Alma Flor Ada and Simón Silva take us into the fields and orchards, and into the lives of the people who work them. Simple poems in Spanish and English, one for each letter of the Spanish alphabet, describe the wonder of the vegetable and fruit farms.

Easy to read, rhyming text about Halloween night incorporates Spanish words, from las brujas riding their broomsticks to los monstruos whose monstrous ball is interrupted by a true horror.

When Little Diego gets a Superman outfit for his birthday, he hopes to fly across the border to Mexico to be with his grandfather whom he loves.

A young multiracial boy celebrates family, friendship, and fun by telling about some of the everyday things for which he is thankful.

Green is a chile pepper, spicy and hot.
Green is cilantro inside our pot.
In this lively picture book, children discover a world of colors all around them: red is spices and swirling skirts, yellow is masa, tortillas, and sweet corn cake.

A brilliant board book for babies, toddlers and their parents to enjoy together. A great introduction to books through a well-known nursery song and interactive text.

In Spanish and in English, a first-person account of children's experiences in detention at the southern U.S. border. Every day, children in migration are detained at the US-Mexico border. They are scared, alone, and their lives are in limbo. Hear My Voice/Escucha mi voz shares the stories of 61 these children, from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Mexico, ranging in age from five to seventeen--in their own words from actual sworn testimonies. The book is in English on one side; then flip it over, and there's a complete Spanish version. Illustrated by 17 Latinx artists, including Caldecott Medalist and multiple Pura Belpré Illustrator Award-winning Yuyi Morales and Pura Belpré Illustrator Award-winning Raúl the Third. Includes information, questions, and action points.

While we follow our narrator to the circus and the pier, share stories from her grandparents' pasts, and celebrate her birthday, the depth and joy of both cultures are conveyed in Spanish and English.

Vibrant paintings and warm personal stories depict memories of growing up in the traditional Mexican-American community of her hometown of Kingsville, Texas.

In this version of a traditional tale, Senor Calavera arrives at Grandma Beetle's door, ready to take her to the next life, but after helping her count, in English and Spanish, as she makes her birthday preparations, he changes his mind.

As Señor Calavera prepares for Grandma Beetle's birthday he finds an alphabetical assortment of unusual presents, but with the help of Zelmiro the Ghost, he finds the best gift of all. Includes a Spanish word for each letter of the Spanish alphabet.

Luca has never lived outside the U.S., but when his parents receive a letter in the mail, the family must pack up and leave home for a strange land. Together in their car, Luca, his brother Paco, and their parents head across the border to Mexico where his parents were born. Luca doesn’t understand why he must leave the only home he’s ever known, his friends, and his school. He struggles through lonely and disorienting times―reflected both in Real’s delicate, symbolic illustrations and through Llanos’ description of his dreams―and leans on music, memory, and familial love for support.

When Carlitos attends a wrestling match in Mexico City with his father, his favorite masked-wrestler has eyes that are strangely familiar.

In this bilingual version of the classic rhyme, set in Peru, Maria takes her llama to school one day.

Marisol McDonald, a biracial, nonconformist, soccer-playing pirate-princess with brown skin and red hair, celebrates her uniqueness.

In this book illustrated with photographs of children, Marc Anthony is a child of Puerto Rican heritage who describes the Bushwick neighborhood in Brooklyn, where he lives with his family.

The story of a family that left Cuba for Venezuela and ended up in Miami. Family members are shown celebrating a birthday, making music and playing together.

A young girl describes her feelings when her father decides to leave their home in Mexico to look for work in the United States. Text in Spanish and English.

Two latino boys experience carefree camaraderie despite one boy's disability. Fun and friendship overpower physical limitations.

Aaron has asked his grandfather Tata to teach him about the healing remedies he uses. Tata is a neighbor and family elder. People come to him all the time for his soothing solutions and for his compassionate touch and gentle wisdom. Tata knows how to use herbs, teas, and plants to help each one. His wife, Grandmother Nana, is there too, bringing delicious food and humor to help Tata's patients heal. An herbal remedies glossary at the end of the book includes useful information about each plant, plus botanically correct drawings.

Although her mother and sisters make fun of her decision to marry a green bird, to Mirabel he is a prince and so when her family's jealousy endangers him, she sets out to save his life and their love.

A young boy and his papa may speak both Spanish and English, but the most important language they speak is the language of love. Here, Arthur Dorros portrays the close bond between father and son, with lush paintings by Rudy Gutierrez.

A collection of more than two dozen nursery rhymes in Spanish, from Spain and Latin America, with English translations.

Ixchel, a young Mayan girl who is not allowed to use her mother's thread to weave, exercises her ingenuity and repurposes plastic bags to create colorful weavings. Includes glossary and author's note.

Something special happened when Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez met. Together, they fought for the rights of countless farmworkers. Side by side, inspiring hope, they changed history. Parallel English and Spanish texts.

This powerful book by award-winning Salvadoran poet Jorge Argueta describes the terrible process that leads young people to undertake the extreme hardships and risks involved in the journey to what they hope will be a new life of safety and opportunity. A refugee from El Salvador’s war in the eighties, Argueta was born to explain the tragic choice confronting young Central Americans today who are saying goodbye to everything they know because they fear for their lives. This book brings home their situation and will help young people who are living in safety to understand those who are not.

Before Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor took her seat in our nation's highest court, she was just a little girl in the South Bronx. Justice Sotomayor didn't have a lot growing up, but she had what she needed -- her mother's love, a will to learn, and her own determination. With bravery she became the person she wanted to be. With hard work she succeeded. With little sunlight and only a modest plot from which to grow, Justice Sotomayor bloomed for the whole world to see. Parallel text in English and Spanish.

During the early days of the Great Depression, New York City's first Puerto Rican librarian, Pura Belpré, introduces the public library to immigrants living in El Barrio and hosts the neighborhood's first Three Kings' Day fiesta.

A collection of nursery rhymes, each in both English and Spanish, collected from the Spanish community in the Americas, many with instructions for accompanying finger plays or other activities.

Hannah describes her neighbors on Gold Street, especially Isabel, who is an adult but still plays with the young children and holds her mother's hand to cross the street, just as she has since Hannah's mother was small.

Kids will love to wiggle along with Doreen Cronin's energetic rhyming text as they follow Scott Menchin's illustrations of a fun-loving spotted dog and his adorable antics.

Little Lobo and Bernabé are bringing supplies to the big celebration in the country across the bridge -- but everyone else seems to be going, too! During the long delay, they see all kinds of people on the bridge for different reasons and speaking different languages, but when someone has a grumpy moment, they all come together to make the wait as good as can be.

Little Lobo, a Mexican American, and Bernabé, his dog, gather tacos, frutas picadas, cuernos, and more and deliver them to los luchadores preparing for Lucha Libre 5000.

When a man brings to a remote village two burros, Alfa and Beto, loaded with books the children can borrow, Ana's excitement leads her to write a book of her own as she waits for the Biblioburro to return. Includes glossary of Spanish terms and a note on the true story of Columbia's Biblioburro and mobile libraries in other countries. Parallel text in English and Spanish.

A young Mexican American girl celebrates the paleta, an icy fruit popsicle, and the many roles it plays in her lively barrio.

The kids miss having Katie as their teacher. When Katie was their teacher, she taught them how to use scissors, took them on long walks to find cows, and read them Green Eggs and Ham. But now that Katie has left for a new job, she no longer there to do the things they love.
When Katie Was Our Teacher is the story about children coping with not having their favorite teacher around. The other teachers have new and exciting things for the children to learn and do and help the children understand that it is alright to miss Katie. After all, Katie surely misses them too.

On his first day as the new kid in school, shy Yefferson's name is consistently mispronounced to his discomfort and embarrassment. With his family's support, Yefferson finds the courage to stand up for himself and his namesake.

It's market day and Mcheshi goes with her mother to the market where she meets the traders, sees their wares, and gets into mischief. English and Swahili.

After a Tlingit mother gives her son a dried piece of salmon with mold on the end, he flings it away in disgust, committing a taboo. This offends the Salmon People, who sweep him into the water and into their world, where they name him Shanyaak'utlaax̲ or Salmon Boy. Find out what happens to Shanyaak'utlaax̲ in this ancient Tlingit story.

A young girl visits her grandmother in Vietnam where her parents were born and learns that she can call two places home. In Vietnamese and English.

The most beautiful fish in the entire ocean discovers the real value of personal beauty and friendship. In Vietnamese and English.

When Tariq brings in some dates to celebrated the new baby in his family, Miss Smith has an idea. How do different families welcome babies into the world? Join Miss Smith's class as they use their senses to explore different customs from around the world.